Schinus areira essential oil: from antibacterial characterization to the development of nanoformulations

CUTRO, ANDREA C.; ANIKE FERREYRA MAILLARD; BORDÓN, ANAHÍ; CORIA, M SUMAMPA; RODRÍGUEZ, SERGIO ANTONIO; HOLLMANN, AXEL

Rosario

Congreso; LIX Reunión Anual de SAIB; 2023

SAIB

Essential oil (EO) obtained from Schinus areira leaves has been shown to have antibacterial activityagainst S. aureus in our previous research. This activity was accompanied by significant changes in theelectrical potential of the cell surface and bacterial membrane model. The main goal of the presentresearch is to get a deeper understanding of the mechanisms underlying the antibacterial effectspreviously observed. In this sense, through fluorescence microscopy, the integrity of S. aureus cells wasevaluated as a function of EO concentration and incubation time. It could be noticed a significantincrease in cell permeability, which showed dose and time dependence. Additionally, by fluorescencespectroscopy and dynamic light scattering studies using DMPC:DMPG (5:1) liposomes, it was possible toevaluate the alterations that EO induces in the lipid membranes. According to these studies, the EOcaused changes in the lipid membrane packing, improving fluidity, reducing cohesive interactionsbetween phospholipids, and making it easier for water to access the interior of the lipid bilayer. All thesealterations result in an increase on the permeability of the liposomes in good agreement with S. aureusexperiments. Afterwards, potential intracellular targets for the EO, as genomic DNA and oxidativemetabolism were investigated. These experiments showed that S. areira EO partially degraded DNA andbrought on oxidative stress. Finally, in order to achieve practical applications such as hydrosolublenanoformulations, green silver nanoparticles were synthesized by using the EO as a biocomposite forreduction and stabilization. The nanoparticles obtained showed antimicrobial activity. All these findingshighlight the multifaceted antibacterial action of this EO and its potential applications as anantimicrobial obtained from a locally significant natural resource.